Chapter 4

Everlee

"Mine."

That's the only word Wild Man says.

That one word, along with the intent written all over his face, has true terror filling my veins, freezing the life-giving blood flowing through them.

Up until this point, I didn't truly fear the situation or Wild Man. One look at him, and I knew he was capable of harming me, but I didn't get the sense that he would. I felt more like an unusual nuisance to him. An inconvenient tolerance he would deal with until I was gone.

Boy, was I ever wrong.

With the straight line of his lips, the flaring of his nostrils, narrowed eyes as dark as night on a starless sky, and the hard bulges of his muscles as he stands over me, I realize I was stupid. So fucking stupid. I made a colossal mistake coming here, and an even bigger one finding this untamed man. Thinking back, how in the hell could I have ever thought this was a good idea?

This man is uncivilized. He's never been in society or around people. Aside from when he was still a young child, memories that have probably faded over time, he's never been taught right from wrong. He doesn't know what a person should or shouldn't do. He has no laws to follow and no morals he was taught. He's going on pure animal instinct.

"Mine."

His growled voice saying that word echoes in my head over and over again.

What does he mean? Surely he's not saying I'm his. That would be ridiculous, and if I'm honest, frightening as hell.

Knowing it'll be a fruitless effort, I still test out his strength and willingness to let me go. His grip doesn't lessen even a fraction.

What in the hell do I do now? The gun and taser are my only chance, but he has to let me go long enough for me to get to one of them.

As if sensing my thoughts, Wild Man pulls the gun from the holster, looks at it for a moment with his jaw clenched, before he tosses it somewhere behind me.

"Wait!" I yell, pulling hard against his unforgiving hold.

He does the same to the black taser.

His free hand latches around my throat at the same time his eyes jerk to mine. I tremble at the deadly look he gives me.

He tilts my head back by his grip. "Mine," he growls again.

I suck in a deep breath, barely able to get air in my lungs, trying to not let the panic that's quickly filling me show on my face.

"No, I'm not yours," I reply firmly.

His expression darkens and the bite of his fingers around my wrists digs against the bones.

"Mine," he grits out, baring his gleaming white teeth.

Is that the only word he knows? Something tells me he knows and understands more, but he probably so rarely talks—if ever—that he doesn't like to.

I open my mouth to protest again, but my breath is cut short when his fingers tighten around my neck. Terror stops me cold when I can't even pull in a breath.

Wild Man puts his face so close to mine that our noses touch.

"Mine."

One moment I'm standing on my feet ready to start fighting the brute tooth and nail, and the next, I'm up in the air hanging upside down. The move is so sudden and shocking that I'm stunned immobile. It only takes seconds to realize the asshole has tossed me over his shoulder.

"Put me down!" I yell, balling my hands into fists and whacking them against his back. His bare ass is right in my face, and I'm tempted to bite the fuck out of it. It's almost funny that I thought about biting his ass earlier in a more carnal way. "Let me go!"

I get a stinging slap on my butt for my efforts. The action was meant to get me to stop beating against his back, but it only fuels the angry fire building inside me.

I buck my body in an attempt to throw myself from his shoulder, but it doesn't work. One of his thick arms wraps around the back of my thighs, and I get another smack on my butt. This one much harder. I cry out at the sharp sting.

I dig my nails into the globes of his asscheeks so hard I'm surprised blood doesn't start flowing. Two can play this game. He hurts me, I hurt him in return.

I get my wish to be let go a moment later. Only it's not in the way I wanted. I'm tossed down on a surprisingly soft pile of blankets, which thrusts me into a new nightmare. This one more potent and chillingly disturbing.

Before I have a chance to scramble from the bed, Wild Man is on top of me, wedging his hips between my legs and settling himself down until his chest is pressed against mine.

"What in the hell are you doing?" I ask, trying to keep myself calm. I push against his chest, my nails biting into the hard muscles.

My wrists are captured again with one of his hands and brought above my head, where he slams them against the blankets. I buck my hips, but I stop immediately when I feel the hard ridge of his erection.

Holy hell. He's fucking hard. That does not bode well for me.

I have got to find a way out of this situation before it gets out of hand. Before Wild Man does something that can't be undone. Fighting and yelling isn't working, so I try something else.

Relaxing my muscles, I hold still, going lax beneath him. From the way his eyes narrow, Wild Man seems suspicious of my capitulation.

"Hey." I keep my voice soft.

Wild Man stays quiet, but his head tilts to the side. I try to pull one of my hands free, but he doesn't let go.

"Let me go," I say quietly.

The muscles in his jaw bunch and his left eye twitches. "Mine," he repeats what seems like the only word in his vocabulary.

I shake my head slowly. "No."

"Mine," he growls.

If I never hear that word again, it would still be too many times.

Frustration tries to outweigh my limited patience, and it takes effort to push it away.

It all goes to hell, and I know I've lost when Wild Man's eyes drop to my chest and something else altogether fills the blackness.

Pure, raw lust. And it scares the shit out of me.

Looking down, I mentally groan when I notice my shirt has been pulled down in my struggles and is showing off the top part of my purple sports bra. I've always thought my breasts were my best asset. Big, but not overly so. Perky, but not to the point where they sit right below my chin.

Right now, with my cleavage playing peek-a-boo, I wish I was one of those girls who complains about being flat chested. My firm Cs are not working in my favor at the moment.

"Hey!" I say loudly, digging my booted heels into the back of his legs, hoping to get his attention away from my boobs. "Eyes up here, buddy!"

He scowls when he focuses back on my face. With his eyes still locked with mine, as if daring me to try and stop him, the hand not holding my wrists lifts and his fingers curl into the top of my shirt. I know what he's going to do before I hear the rip of material. He yanks and the shirt rips as easily as if it were paper.

"Stop that!" I yell, and once again, it falls on deaf ears. Or rather, he hears me, he's just choosing to ignore my demands.

I start bucking in earnest, adding my feet to the mix. I'm wearing heavy hiking boots, so I know the jabs can't feel good against his legs, but it's like I'm not even doing anything to him. My wrists are starting to turn raw from pulling on them so much, and I know I'll have bruises later.

My ruined shirt gets tossed to the side and Wild Man immediately reaches for the front of my sports bra.

Oh sweet Jesus, this can't be happening. This seriously can not be happening.

"Please stop." My voice cracks.

He ignores my struggles and pleas and easily rips my sports bra off like it was made of the flimsiest of material. How in the fuck did he rip it so easily? The fresh air slides across my sweat-dampened skin. I'm dimly aware of my nipples tightening. Not from desire, but from the air hitting my sweaty flesh.

Lifting my hips, I try to knock him free, uncaring that I'm probably making it worse by rubbing against his shaft. I just need him off me. I need to leave this place. To get away from this savage man. Because I know what's coming next, and I want no part of it.

I squeeze my eyes closed when Wild Man drops his head and I feel the warmth of something wet against my nipple. His teeth scrape against the tender flesh, and if this situation weren't what it was—if he weren't forcing these acts on me—it might have felt good. Right now, it feels anything but.

A hiss slips past my lips and tears sting the back of my eyes when he palms my other breast and squeezes. His fingers pinch the nipple at the same time he sucks the other one deep into his mouth. He bites down and the pain is nearly too much.

His rusty groan rumbles in his chest, and I feel the vibration of it against mine. A tear slips out the corner of my eye and rolls down my cheek and onto my ear.

Feelings of helplessness and hopelessness weigh heavily in my stomach, mixing with the nausea that's been slowly building since I realized what a monstrous mistake I made coming out here. This man is too big to fight off and all of my weapons are useless. There is no telling him no. There is no begging him to stop. He's taking what he wants and for some reason he wants me.

I am utterly and truly fucked, in the literal sense.

"Mine."

My eyes snap open at the snarled word and the painful grip on my breast. Wild Man looks up at me, his hair covering one of his black eyes. Even in the waning light, I see the glistening of his lips.

Fear pitches my stomach upside down.

When I don't respond, his lips peel back from his teeth and he growls the word again. "Mine!"

I shake my head. I'll be damned if I'll willingly give him what he wants. He's a fucking lunatic if he thinks otherwise.

He lets my breast go and his weight leaves me. I don't get the chance to suck in a full breath of air before I'm suddenly flipped over onto my stomach.

Renewed determination whips through me, and I scramble to my knees with the intent to roll off the other side of the pile of blankets. My ankle is grabbed in a firm grip, and I fall back to my stomach when I'm pulled backward.

"Get your fucking hands off me!" I screech, slamming my foot backward, hoping to connect with something. All I meet is air.

Then there's a weight on the back of my thighs and hands are reaching between me and the blankets. I fight and buck and scream so loud the sound pierces my ears. But no matter how much I struggle, my shorts and underwear are pulled roughly down my legs. They get caught on my boots only long enough for them to be taken off as well.

Then I'm naked. And Wild man is naked. There's not a stitch of clothing separating our bodies. Nothing to prevent him forcing himself on me. Taking from me something I don't want to give.

Long fingers wrap around my hips and my ass is pulled up. I curl my hands into the blanket and try to crawl away. My breath leaves me on a whoosh when my arms are yanked behind me and trapped, once again, in one of his hands. He presses them to my lower back.

"Wild Man!" I scream the name, wishing I knew what his real name was. Maybe if I made him feel more human, reminded him that he is human, he'll stop acting like a fucking animal.

A grunt is my only response.

I feel something hard poking at my entrance.

"Stop!" I cry hoarsely.

With no support of my arms, my cheek is smashed against the blankets. I try to drop my weight to the bed, anything to get his dick away from me, but with my arms pulled back, I can't go anywhere without popping them from their sockets.

Wild Man pays me no attention, his crazed lust-filled mind set on only one thing. Satisfying one of man's most basic needs, uncaring of the destruction it'll cause.

I go limp below him and brace myself, knowing there's not a damn thing I can do. Tears fill my eyes, dropping to the soft dark-green blanket below me.

"Please," I whisper. I don't know if I'm asking God for help or begging Wild Man to stop.

Regardless, my request goes unheeded.

With the fingers of one hand wrapped around my hip and his other hand still holding my wrists, Wild Man, with no compunction at all and a low grunt, slams his hips forward, seating himself completely in one go.

I cry out at the sudden sharp pain, my body tensing, trying to expel him. He's too fucking big. Even if I were fully prepared and willing, there is no preparing for a man of his size. It feels like he's in my stomach, rearranging my organs to accommodate him.

Knowing it's useless, I try again to get away. I'm held back by my wrists and my hip.

Thankfully, Wild Man doesn't move. He holds still, grinding his hips into my ass. My nails dig into my hands, no doubt leaving crescent marks in my palms, and I turn my head to the side. Out the corner of my eye, I see him with his head tipped down, looking at the place he's violating me, his hair falling forward. His gaze appears crazed, more hungry than he was before.

He lets my waist go and moves his hand to the back of my neck. All too soon, he pulls his hips back slowly, only to thrust back in just as hard as the first time. The growl he lets out sounds animalistic. Another low cry leaves me and more tears stream down my face. The pain isn't as bad, but it's still there, stealing my breath and searing into my soul.

Resolve firms my spine. I can get through this. I can endure this savage brutality, and once it's over, leave this place and forget my stupid fascination with Wild Man.

He picks up speed, his deep grunts and groans filling the small space around us. Each slap of his hips against my ass has me rocking forward, and with each one, he pulls me back by my wrists and neck, holding me in place.

The only thing I can do is lay there and take it. Let this man use my body for his sick pleasure.

And that's what I do. With my head laying sideways, I stare across the small room, ignoring the way my body jerks and wincing every few thrusts when Wild Man hits a spot too deep. My stomach cramps at the invasion of my body and low sobs escape my lips. The slide of his too-large shaft scrapes against dry walls, sending shards of pain through me.

After what feels like hours later, but could only be minutes, he buries himself deep inside me, smashing our bodies together. "Mine," he snarls and lets out a guttural growl. Warmth coats my insides.

I'm both grateful it seems to be over, but disgusted to have this man's cum inside me.

He holds me still for several seconds before he lets me go. I fall to my stomach and then roll to my side, tucking my knees up to my chest. My eyes immediately go to him.

He's still on his knees in the same place. His eyes are pointed down at his glistening cock before lifting to mine. Heat fills them and my stomach clenches painfully when I realize he may not be done with me.

Then another thought occurs. Was that the first time he's had sex? It has to be, right?

I crab crawl backward, the rough bark of the tree meeting my back, when he gets to his feet. A couple of long steps and he's standing over me, leering down. His half hard cock sways right in front of my face, but I ignore it. His expression is blank, and I'm not sure if that's a good thing or bad.

He just stands there a moment before he turns on his heel and leaves the structure. I feel disgusted and my body hurts everywhere. Bile rises in my throat when I feel his cum leak out of me and slide down my thighs. I want a blistering hot shower and a scoring pad to scrub away every drop of him.

Wild Man returns. In his hand and trailing behind him is a rope about a quarter inch thick. My gaze snaps up, meeting his. Before I have a chance to even think about getting away from him, he's down on his knees before me.

"Stop!" I screech, clawing at his hands when he reaches forward and winds the rope around my waist.

It's like a fucking baby is attacking him with all my attempt it's doing to him.

Once he has the rope secured around my waist, he ties it, using a knot I've never seen before. My breath stutters out and dread coats my insides when he takes the other end of the rope and ties it around his wrist.

Are you fucking kidding me? He's attaching me to him? There goes my chance of escaping while he's asleep. Unless I can untie the knot or figure out a way to cut the rope. I look at it and the knot looks complicated as hell. Hopefully he's a heavy sleeper.

Once he's satisfied, he sits back on his heels, looking pleased with himself.

Grabbing the length of the rope, I tug on it so hard it lifts his arm. "Release me," I demand. "Now."

I know he understands me—I can see it in his eyes—but he only does his stupid grunt thing.

Quick as lightning, he darts his arm out, and before I realize what's happening, we're both down on the blankets on our sides. I grit my teeth and bite back my own growl when I feel the whole front of his body plastered to the back of mine. His semi-hard dick included. He shifts his hips until the length of his shaft is wedged between my buttcheeks. I'd much rather take this spooning shit than have him fuck me again.

Reaching down, he pulls one of the thinner blankets over the top of us to our hips. The arm I'm lying on curls around my torso so his fingers wrap around my shoulder, effectively holding me in place. His other arm is around my waist with his hand going down my body. He cups his entire hand over my sore pussy possessively.

After he's done with all of that, his face goes into my hair and he inhales deeply.

Seriously, what is up with him sniffing me?

His voice, when he speaks, is deep and dark and it sends creepy vibes sliding down my spine.

"Mine."

* * *

My eyes springopen when a gut-wrenching pain explodes in my lower stomach. Disorientation has me in its grip for all of two seconds before I realize what the pain is from.

I'm on my stomach with Wild Man's heaving body on top of me.

He gives a brutal thrust, and I scream because it feels like he's ripping me apart from the inside.

I grab the blanket underneath my hands and start bucking and twisting my hips, anything to get him off me. All it does is make him go deeper, which adds to my suffering. I scream and yell and cry until my voice goes hoarse and the cloth beneath my face is soaked with my tears.

I can do nothing. I'm stuck beneath this merciless and unhinged man as he continues to violate me over and over again.

Wild Man grabs my hair and yanks my head back. His other arm slides between me and the bed and up until his fingers wrap around my throat. Between the hair pulling and his harsh grip barely allowing me to breathe, black dots dance on the outside of my vision.

Wild Man buries his face in my neck and his hot breath scorches my skin. His grunts of pleasure mix with my cries of pain. He continues to rut, pounding his hard flesh into my abused body. His pelvis rams against my butt, retreats, and slams back forward. Revulsion and pain mix together, pulling me down into a terrifying void.

The black dots grow bigger, filling my vision. I welcome the thought of going unconscious. Anything to block out what's being done to me.

Seconds or maybe minutes later, my body goes completely lax as my reprieve finally takes me under.